Doggie Poo and You

“Beloved, be only where you are and be wholly there—be ever childlike, and you will then be all things, and be unconquerable.” Goethe

I’m not sure if this post is about gratitude, coaching, ideal days, or dog poop. Perhaps a little of each. This morning I sit here with tears in my eyes—the “good” kind... the ones that spread truth bumps across my entire being as I realize how grateful I am for the life I'm being called to live. As I slowly read through a client’s description of her ideal day, I cannot discern fact from fiction because it all feels True with a capital T. It is ideal. She’s living it and through her glorious description, so am I. Her ideal day feeds mine and vice versa. It is a connection of humanity and spirituality... the sense of oneness that unites us all.

To know who we are at our deepest core is the greatest gift of life. To help others discover this for themselves may be the second greatest gift. Oh... to live free and true, held by our dreams that are more fantastic than we might ever imagine. Enter the dog poop and a story I share with permission...

Sweet little Lily (my client’s granddaughter) ventured into the back yard with her beloved dog, Meika. Now Lily’s not supposed to go in the back yard because Meika is a husky and makes large poops. Well, she went into the back yard, and while standing on the patio, dropped her trousers and announced that she was going to pee in the yard just like Meika. Angry Grandma said, “No.” Self-assured Lily said, “Yes.” Then she went to the edge of the patio and tried to pee standing up! Grandma got tickled and tried to hide it, but Lily saw her grin, and soon they had a belly laugh going (no more angry Grandma). Lily laughed so hard that she stumbled off the patio into the grass and slipped in a large pile of fresh dog poo. They laughed even more until an “amazingly free of anger” Grandma carried Lily up to the bathtub and hosed her off, calling her “Stinky,” which Lily loved.

It may be the irreverent part of me or my own impish inner child, but I roared with laughter upon reading this charming tale. Who would imagine that reading about a little girl rolling around in dog poop could be so delightful? It’s the exact opposite of propriety and sounds downright icky on the base level. Doesn’t society suggest that we’re supposed to stay clean and tidy and/or be the prim grandmother in sensible shoes reading Mother Goose by the fire to our pink-cheeked offspring?

But, oh, life is messy! How enchanting it is to witness a little girl belly-laughing so hard as to tip herself over and land in POO! I adore the cheekiness of it all... Lily deciding she can pee standing up (i.e. do anything she sets her mind to) and her grandmother not scolding her, but rather giggling into the mess. Giggling into the mess.

Sadly, I am reminded of another little girl (me) and a staid and proper grandmother. Me toddling down the hall of my grandparent’s house with my panties wrapped around my ankles unable to pull them up by myself. A much different response ensued. Rather than scooping me up with tenderness and a chuckle, my own grandma met me with a swift swat on the bottom and hushed words of shame... no sweet “Stinky” for me. While I’ll never know what caused my grandmother’s response I do wonder how the voices in my head (the ones of shame) might have shifted had she instead responded with laughter and love.

Life is messy! Kids slip in dog poo and so do we in our own ways every day. Can we wash it off with laughter? Or will we wallow in the stink of shame? Lily’s wise grandma offers this:

“Here's the thing - laughing at my granddaughter as she slides around in dog poop is not my perfect image of myself as grandmother. (I thought we'd sit quietly and make art and read books.) But somehow, realizing I already have the perfect life spoke to me and convinced me that Lily is going to thrive on being with me, the Real me, the dog poop me. Those are where the good times really happen.”

As I said at the beginning, I’m not sure whether this post is about gratitude, coaching, ideal days, or dog poop. What I do know is that I absolutely adore my clients and am eternally grateful for all they teach me. When I see them laugh at their own foibles and/or rise above the “should’s” of life, they inspire me and remind me to do the same. Together we discover “where the good times really happen.” While I doubt that anyone’s ideal day would include rolling around in dog poo, my guess is that this story of Lily and her grandma will be one that goes into the archives of their sweetest memories. Can’t you just hear “Do you remember the time...?”

Life is messy! We all have days when we slip in dog poo, but as Goethe reminds us “be ever childlike, and you will then be all things, and be unconquerable.” How might you and I learn from Lily and her grandmother today?